THE JOHN DICKINSON LECTURES
Sponsored by the Friends of the John Dickinson Mansion
[**Indicates The Friends has a copy, attached to this listing. * Indicates a copy of the lecture was located and included in the book Delaware’s John Dickinson: The Constant Watchman of Liberty, but a copy is not attached to this compilation.]
1952: ** “JOHN DICKINSON AND THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION”
James M. Tunnell, Jr., Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Delaware
September 17, 1952 (Given at the dinner following the ceremony of donation of the John Dickinson Mansion to the State of Delaware)
1954: ** “DICKINSON AND THE CONSTITUTION”
John A. Munroe, Professor of History, University of Delaware
September 17, 1954
[The files also contain a clipping of a column by Dr. Munroe, entitled “John Dickinson, Wise Rebel”, dated Dec. 4, 1961; the News Letters have two other short articles by Dr. Munroe, “Dickinson and the Constitution” (April 1964) and “Dickinsonia” (Spring 1961).
1955: ** “DICKINSON AND THE QUAKERS”
Frederick B. Tolles, Howard M. Jenkins Research Professor of Quaker History and Director of the Friends Historical Library, Swarthmore College
[Swarthmore Archives unable to locate this talk among Tolles’ papers]
1956: “THE GRAND FEDERAL PROCESSION”
Dr. Julian Boyd, Editor of the Jefferson Papers at Princeton University
[Unable to locate in on-line listing of the Boyd papers at Princeton; brief excerpts from the speech appear in the Friends News Letter of Fall 1956. The talk was about a parade held in Philadelphia on July 4, 1788 in celebration of the Declaration of Independence and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. There are some excerpts from the speech, including a great quote from Dickinson about the turmoil of the times in which the Constitution was written.]
1957:** “THE MAJOR MONUMENT”
Dr. William Edel, President of Dickinson College
September 21, 1957
[Archives at Dickinson College located only the introduction to this talk.]
1958: ** “JOHN DICKINSON”
Judge Richard S. Rodney,
September 20, 1958
1959: UNTITLED
E. McClung Fleming, Dean of Education Programs, Winterthur Museum
[Winterthur Library unable to locate this talk among the Fleming papers]
1960: UNTITLED
Mrs. George Maurice Morris, Washington DC
[The talk was about moving a colonial mansion from Danvers MA to Washington DC]
[This talk does not seem to be pertinent to Dickinson, so I did not search for it.]
1961:
1962:
1963:
1964:** UNTITLED
United States Senator J. Caleb Boggs
[ Note: Date of Dinner moved from Constitution Day to Dickinson Birthday]
1965: * JOHN DICKINSON: COLONIAL PHILANTHROPIST
Gov. Charles Terry
Nov. 2, 1965
1966:** “PUBLISHING DICKINSON’S PAPERS: A CHALLENGE TO DELAWARE”
Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Executive Director, National Historical Publications Commission, National Council on Historical Sites and Buildings
1967:** “JOHN DICKINSON: FORGOTTEN PATRIOT”
Edwin Wolf 2d – Librarian of The Library Company of Philadelphia
1968:** “JOHN DICKINSON: CONSTANT WATCHMAN AND LOVER OF LIBERTY”
Dr. Milton Flower, Dickinson College
[Note: The first part of this address was published in the April 1969 newsletter of the Friends and there is a copy of Part 2 in the Friends files, with no indication it was published. There are some differences in the “divided” version in the files and the copy of the address furnished by Archives of Dickinson College, which is the version of the speech in this collection.]
[A paper entitled “Discovering John Dickinson” by Milton Flower, 15 pages, appears in the Friends’ 1971 file. It is not included here.]
1969: * “JOHN DICKINSON: MAN OF GOVERNMENT” [or ”Dickinson’s Concept of Good Government”]
Gov. Russell Peterson
1970:
1971: * “JOHN DICKINSON AS REVEALED BY HIS LETTERS”
Dr. Leon DeValinger, Delaware State Archivist [State Archives does not have DeValinger’s papers; U. of DE could not locate this talk among the DeValinger papers it has. However it appears in a newsletter of the Friends.]
++++++++++++++++
1972: UNTITLED
Dr. Richard P. McCormick, Professor of American Political History, Rutgers University and Member of United States Bicentennial Commission
1973:** UNTITLED
Rev. Dr. Howard L. Rubendall, President, Dickinson College
1974: UNTITLED [Spoke on plans for the American Bicentennial Celebration]
Charles G. Dorman, Senior Curator of Independence Hall National Historical Park
1975: UNTITLED
Mr. Lawrence Henry, Director, Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs, State of DE
1976: UNTITLED
Dr. William J. Murtaugh, Keeper of the National Register in the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation of the National Park Service.
1982: UNTITLED
Whitfield Bell, executive officer of the American Philosophical Society and a graduate of Dickinson College
1983: Presentation by Dean Nelson, James Stewart and Madeline Hite of the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs on the research done on the Dickinson property
1984: UNTITLED
John Kern, the new Director of Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
1985: “DELAWARE BECOMES THE FIRST STATE”
Dr. William H. Williams, Professor of History, University of Delaware
1986:** UNTITLED
The Honorable Michael N. Castle, Governor of DE
1987: Presentation by Madeline Hite of HCA; showing of video/film on the Mansion
1988: Presentation by Mary Bray, the Mansion site supervisor. Showing of orientation film.
1989: Presentation by James Stewart and Ann Horsey of HCA
2008:** “THE CHARACTER OF DICKINSONIAN POLITICS”
“MY NAME REMEMBERED BY POSTERITY: THE LEGACY OF JOHN DICKINSON”
Dr. Jane Calvert, University of Kentucky
(Given at annual meeting of The Friends of the John Dickinson Mansion)
Other writings about Dickinson:
Jane Calvert’s Eulogy to Dickinson – read annually at the wreath laying on Dickinson’s grave
Excerpt from “Suspected of Independence” by David McKean (this is a newly published book about Thomas McKean; review in the Wall Street Journal notes that Dickinson “appears prominently in this biography.”)
“The Cost of Liberty: The Life of John Dickinson” by William Murchison (published 2014)
Presentation given at the Delaware Archives in 2015 by William Foresman entitled “In Order to Form a More Perfect Union: John Dickinson, James Madison and the United States Constitution” Address given by Andrew Christie at Valley Forge for Delaware Day 1955. We have a summary of his talk; the full version may be in state Archives.
J.H. Powell, “John Dickinson President of the Delaware State, 1781-1782” (Vol. 1 of Delaware History, 1946) and also “The House on Jones Neck.” (Oak Knoll Press, 1954)
John Sweeney, Eulogy at the wreath-laying on Dickinson’s Grave, 2017
List compiled by Battle Robinson, July 2017